This remains a frequently asked question, so I want to answer it as completely as I can. The names that are left out in this account are because I have not had a chance to ask them if I could use their names.
In I met a man from one of the old noble families of Eastern Europe. His family had owned a large and prosperous industry before the communist takeover in their country. In a conversation with him, I was told about an extraordinary order of knights who were keeping alive the vision of chivalry and the defense of Christianity, and were waging a brave fight to reclaim what had been lost to the enemies of the cross.
He explained that you could not join this order, but had to be recommended and proven to be true of the most stringent biblical standards of morality and integrity, and have risked your life for the sake of the gospel. I was very intrigued, and decided to research this order called "The Knights of Malta.
I visited the island of Malta while in the Navy, and at that time toured their old fortifications. I was very moved as I read about their historic exploits, but had no idea the order still existed. While reading about their battles against Islam during the Middle Ages, I felt it was one of the greatest stories of courage, endurance, and devotion to a calling since biblical times. Three times they faced the most powerful armies of Islam, outnumbered by as many as one hundred to one, but vowed never to retreat before the enemies of the cross.
They endured some of the most terrible sieges in the history of warfare, and to the astonishment of the whole world, these few brave knights prevailed. They almost single-handedly stopped the seemingly unstoppable hordes of Islam, saving Christian Europe. Over the next couple of years, I often traveled through Europe, and was surprised to find many who still revered the famous Knights of Malta.
